GOLDENBORN

A teen girl is recruited to join a supernatural investigation agency after witnessing an attack on her father.

Just one year ago, Akoma Addo would have sworn there was no such thing as magic. Then her father was attacked by a sphere of light, which left him in a coma. She was recruited to work for InterMag, a group operating under the guise of the San Francisco Police Department’s Special Cases Division. Now 17-year-old Akoma investigates crimes in which magic may be involved and tries to solve her father’s case. When an undercover operation goes sideways and a body is discovered surrounded by ash and molten gold, Akoma realizes that the recent spate of crimes in AfricaTown may be connected in ways she could never have imagined. When she’s confronted by someone she may not be able to trust with a deal that is risky but could lead to her father’s being healed, Akoma faces a tough decision. Ghanaian gods and mages intersect with advanced technology in a near-future San Francisco in this story centering on Black characters that excels in its robust worldbuilding. AfricaTown, in particular, is beautifully rendered; the smells and sounds of many African countries’ cultures coming together in one community build a vivid celebration of the diaspora. The characters’ banter provides humor in otherwise tense situations, and the ending promisingly leaves the door open for more.

Magic and mystery collide in this gripping Afrofuturist debut.